


as I love you, as I loved

by DOYOUNGS_HONEY



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Angst with a Happy Ending, Boo Seungkwan is Whipped, Chwe Hansol | Vernon is Whipped, Comedy, Emotional Constipation, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Heartbreak, How Do I Tag, Idiots in Love, If You Squint - Freeform, Kinda, M/M, Shapeshifter Boo Seungkwan, Vampire Chwe Hansol | Vernon, kinda????, they’re bad at feelings, this is my first ever work I do not know how tags work
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-16 11:34:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29331657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DOYOUNGS_HONEY/pseuds/DOYOUNGS_HONEY
Summary: Seungkwan’s heart is made of fragile, pink tinted glass and Hansol takes it and breaks it into a million little pieces.But it’s ok, because he picks it up and puts it back together, repairs it with gold. It looks better that way, anyways.
Relationships: Boo Seungkwan/Chwe Hansol | Vernon
Comments: 5
Kudos: 10





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [aprilcotdream](https://archiveofourown.org/users/aprilcotdream/gifts).



> English is not my first language and I struggle with past tenses, but I got the spirit!!!! Please give this a try!
> 
> For better visualisation, i based this off of their Fear era looks.
> 
> This work will be part of a series surrounding the fantasy universe I created, but it can be red as a stand-alone. This is the first part, so if you ever get confused, it’s not because you missed previous parts, it’s because I didn’t explain it well enough. My apologies, regarding that.

The youngest of the shapeshifter’s inner circle came strutting in, rushing past Miyeon, Minnie and the guards that tried not to show any signs of surprise.

A bumblebe e, barely noticeable, had flown through the open window and Vernon realised a second too late it was no ordinary bug. He blamed it on how long it had been since they had seen each other, but he knew that that particular habit had been engraved into his memory; like the script of an antic poem in marble stone.

“I request your attention, your highness”, the youngest declares loudly, bowing hastily in front of Moonbyul, who was comfortably seated at her desk. He was using the voice he reserved for business, lanced equally with superiority and sweetness, an act he put up as a master of persuasion. 

If his dead body would have allowed him, Hansol would have shivered. 

The Seungkwan that stood before him was so familiar, yet so different from the boy he fell in love with three summers ago. A short temper, a brilliant mind. A sharp tongue, flush, pink cheeks, and the brightest pair of eyes Hansol had seen in all his lifetimes. 

Before him, now, stood the youngest member of the Byun council, in glimmering white silk attire, adorned with the rightful _pearls_ and chains. Seungkwan had never worn actual silver, always afraid to accidentally hurt him, but today he was. On the left side, he proudly wore the royal sigil to present his rank. 

His kohl lined sharp eyes, likewise decorated with shades of iridescent glitter and pink shades, remained unmovingly on his queen.

Moonbyul sighed, straightened and met the shapeshifter’s insistent stare. She waved her hand and instantly getting the sign, the guards left the room and closed the door behind them. In the last few seconds he caught a glimpse of Bang Chan coming to collect Minnie from hearing too much of business they all knew she hated, the said girl’s ward giving Hansol a last encouraging look.

Upon finding himself under the attention he demanded and privacy with the queen, Seungkwan stepped closer and started explaining his terms. 

“The senate requests answers regarding the vampire attacks upon the humans that reside on our territory, as well as the questionable recent activity near our borders with your realm”, he says calmly. 

_Questionable activity?_ Hansol cursed under his breath. He thought he had been careful. He only visited the river a couple of times, and he made sure to stay on their part of land-

“Of course.”, Moonbyul answered, stealing a glance at him while smirking. Screw Sehun for sending him to fulfil duties that weren’t is and give reports while he was fucking the heir of the Kim pack. 

* * *

At one point during their discussion, Irene had come in to ask Hansol to sign some papers. Hesitant, he followed her outside and promised Moonbyul to send someone to overlook what she and Seungkwan were settling. 

“He’s that boy you were talking about.”, Irene said, the first proper sentence she had addressed him since they left the queen’s office. “The one who’s picture you keep on your nightstand.”

It was a statement, not a question, because Irene knew. The night he had lost it, he had mostly destroyed his chamber. He did not, however, have the heart to rip the only picture of Seungkwan he had, so he let it there in between shards.

Two weeks later, when he returned, everything was put in place, wiped clean of the anger he had poured into the poor inanimate objects. The picture had been framed again, placed neatly on his nightstand.

He never asked who did it, although he was grateful, and just assumed Moonbyul hired a few maids and workers and cut the expenses from his pay-check. 

“Yeah.”, Hansol responded, snapping out of the thoughts he had been trapped in. “That’s him.”

* * *

Seeing Hansol was one of the last things he had wanted but he knew he couldn’t pass down the responsibility Baekhyun had trusted him with. He didn’t have to do it, because the older would never force his babies to do anything that made them uncomfortable, but Seungkwan was no coward.

Whether he saw Hansol or not, he wore his uniform proudly to represent his species, kingdom and rank, even if he went a little overboard with the makeup and accessories.

It didn’t matter, he went there to ask the vampire queen about official duties, have her sort out the situation and sign some papers as Baekhyun’s messenger and he was going to get it done and leave that damned realm that made his skin crawl.

Seungkwan made his entrance like he always did, in form on a sneaky little insect, transforming and smoothly transitioning into his human form. He acted like he didn’t see the two girls and Chris out the corner of his eye, acted like Hansol wasn’t there. Even if he was, nothing was between them and he was here on duty.

He looked the same as always. Silver hair, a bit long like Seungkwan said he liked it. He wonders if Hansol kept it because those words he once said still meant something to the vampire.

His uniform, completed with the usual accessories and his badge. Unchanged. 

He has missed this kingdom, these halls, these faces. Standing before Moonbyul felt like standing before his mom as a troublesome child to explain his actions. Pushing down feelings was harder than he thought and he hoped some kind of miracle would get him through this meeting smoothly.

Hansol was watching him like a beast observing its prey and that did  not  help his chase. The only thing keeping him sane was the fact that, like him, the latter was on duty as the queen’s right hand and he was observing a meeting held between officials. Nothing more.

It went well, a few glances and smirks on Moonbyul’s side, but they managed to settle the attacks.

Just as they were preparing to go over said  _suspicious activity_ near the border, a miracle, in the form of Irene Bae, came to rescue him from Hansol’s eyes, that were following his every move. 

He had only seen the woman a couple of times, met her properly once, but he knew he was one of the old royal residents, along her wife, and that she overlooked the cleaning and construction staff, as well as the kingdom’s transport. 

In a matter of minutes, Hansol was following her out the office, leaving Seungkwan alone with the queen. 

As soon as the doors shut, the young shapeshifter deflated, covering his face with his hands. 

“I have the worst, worst timing and the worst, worst luck.”, he says, voice muffled, now leaning his entire weight on the ancient oak desk.

Moonbyul just laughs, pats his head and shifts to sit more comfortably in her chair. “Suspicions activity, huh?”

Seungkwan looks up to glare at her and the queen laughs again.

* * *

As he had expected, the attacks were the product of newly turned vampires and their wards, all of them citizens who even after more than a decade would refuse to show even the least bit of respect to their queen. Moonbyul had explained to him that she and her counsel were trying to come to terms with a punishment, but imprisoning them never seemed to work.

Seungkwan knew that Baekhyun would understand, that he frankly didn’t care about the dead humans anyways, but had sent him to ask about it in order to avoid suspicions.

The latter part of the duties they were meant to discuss, well.

They had known that the one roaming around the border was Hansol.

Baekhyun, Jessi and their counsel, as well as all the vampires were aware who lingered among the river that divided their territory.

It was almost like Hansol was looking for him, hoping he would, too, show up at the place where they had first met, where they had shared so many memories.

Seungkwan had desperately avoided that place, because his way of coping with heartbreak was pushing everything that reminded him of his ex-lover away.

_ Lover _ . Seungkwan had used that term to describe Hansol for about a month before everything fell apart. It started from his friends jokingly calling the vampire his lover boy while Seungkwan was still in denial, which later turned to an alias he held close to his heart.

_ Vernon Hansol Chwe, my lover _ , he had said once. He had been a fool.

Hansol had been his, once, but it seems as they both had different definitions for  belonging to another person , especially to one you  love .

Their love story felt like it happened ages ago, one of those tragic tales that sailors who are lucky enough to survive preach that the beautiful sirens sing about.

Their little meeting ended before Hansol had the chance to come back, although Hyungwon came in at some point. He walked in all serious and intimidating, probably being told that the queen was in a meeting and he was needed to supervise.

As soon as he recognised the younger, he threw himself on the other available chair, hugging him. “Kwanie, I thought I would never see you again because you avoided us like the plague!”

Half of that was the latter being over dramatic, but part of it was true, because like many other things, such as chocolate eclairs or flower shops, Seungkwan avoided the vampires and any friends he had made within that species.

It left a bitter taste in his mouth, now that he thought about it, how he said he’d let Hansol go after that afternoon in which his world collapsed, because he was done with being hurt, yet here he was, tiptoeing around anything that reminded him of sapphire eyes, gummy smiles and calloused hands.

* * *

He took off through the huge window with view to the sea that stretched over the entire back wall of Moonbyul’s office. She had had people break the wall, replacing it with glass, then able to look out to the wast sea she loved so dearly.

Seungkwan had wanted to ask them how they do it. Both Moonbyul and Hyungwon found love in a species other than theirs, much like him, but their story was ongoing. 

The writer, creator of beautiful chaos, dipped their quill in velvety black ink and continued to sketch out their destinies. The writer of  _his _ story, however, decided that he was not worthy of the happiness he had just acquired, so they decided to break his heart for character development and force him to move on with his life.

He wanted to believe that  _he _ was the writer of his own story, but it was apparent to anyone that knew him even a little bit that he wasn’t.

* * *

Seungkwan was 18 when he first met Vernon. Fresh out of the lifetime he spent training at the academy, ready to conquer the world, wide eyed and life full.

His graduation had taken place a week prior and he had finally moved out of the tiny dorms they were provided. He loved rooming with Donghyuck, he really did, and he felt bad leaving the younger behind, but the taste of freedom was so sweet and he had never been this eager.

He had missed home dearly, only able to come back for holidays or family deaths. He had missed the tangerine tree orchards, his childhood bedroom, his moms cooking.

The Boo family home was near the border with the vampire territories and while many shapeshifters preferred to keep their distance, Seungkwan did not fear or hold a grudge against them. He had met a vampire once when he was brought in for their training. The seniors whispered about him being someone important, coming to their school after a letter delivered personally by their _king_ , but his name was not one Seungkwan remembered.

What he did remember was his pale skin, almost translucent, and sharp blue eyes. Their manuals description was accurate, but at the same time didn’t do the man in front of their class any justice. He understood that day why their professors had insisted on the fact that vampires can be one of the most dangerous species.

Although, shapeshifters were not far behind. Seungkwan huffed. Still sitting on his favourite stone at the shore of the river behind his garden, he closed his eyes and tried his best to recall what the man looked like. What did the vampires have on them? Their cells could move and modify to their wish, why should he fear them?

The reflection that looks back at him looks ... dead. He had done his best to mirror the appearance of the vampire onto his own image and it had worked. Well, of course it worked, it would have been embarrassing if after 12 years of learning to master his abilities, he couldn’t change his skin and eye color. The new look didn’t really suit him. It wasn’t ugly, just strange. He didn’t quite feel like himself like this.

A nearby cracking sound snapped him out of his thoughts. Was anyone near? Was it a vampire? His family’s home was the only one in the area, their first neighbours living a good 10 minute walk away.

He considered keeping the appearance of a vampire. Would he be able to trick one into thinking he’s their species?

“What are you going on that side, young man?”, a voice spoke suddenly, making Seungkwan jump. In the process, his cover was blown, his skin returning to it’s rosy color, cheeks flushing a deep red.

On the other side of the narrow river was a man in a fitted black uniform. Pale skin, deep blue eyes. 

Young man? They couldn’t be far apart in age. The latter didn’t look a day over 21. 

“My mistake.”, the unknown man concluded, linking his hands behind his back in a polite yet bored manner. “I thought you were one of my people. I forgot your species is able to take the form of anything and anyone, even vampires.”

Dumbfounded, Seungkwan looked back at the man. “You thought I was a vampire?”, he asks rather dumbly. He wished he hadn’t, but the words were already said.

“I did.”, the man responds, and Seungkwan almost jumps with glee. He fooled an almighty vampire with his looks ... he had to tell Minhyuk and Ten. “Your transformation was quite deceiving. Good job.”

Seungkwan’s face lit up. He always took pride in his achievements, especially when they were being acknowledged by others. He was quite a sucker for praise.  _A real teacher’s pet_ , his friends always teased him in school, and he couldn’t even deny it. 

“Thank you ... sir?”, he finally managed after what seemed like an eternity. The last word feels weird coming out of his mouth because what the heck, this guy looks like they could have been classmates. “Ignore that last part. You’re probably not older than 21.”, he adds.

Said stranger laughs in his face, even going as far as throwing his head back, and Seungkwan’s looks at him like he’s crazy, because at this point, he thinks he might be.

“What’s so funny?”, he ends up asking, half flustered, half angry. 

“I’m way older than 21.”, stranger danger finally responds and Seungkwan pulls a face. 

“I don’t believe that.”

The vampire shrugs, then proceeds to just ... walk away.  Well, that was rude, Seungkwan thinks, as he makes his was back home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okkkk so I was actually planing on posting this all at once, but I haven’t been able to finish chapter 3 yet and if I didn’t post it, my draft would have been deleted T^T (I have it saved somewhere else, but I didn’t want to go through the process of tagging it again). 
> 
> Regardless, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! 
> 
> Also, you might notice that my writing goes from being descriptive and wanting to be poetic to crack. i am a recovering poor soul, that used to write on Wattpad in 2017 - but i'm trying to fix the quirks I picked up from back then, so please bear with me. as you can notice, i can write grammatically correct sentences (for the most part), i devine my works into paragraphs so it's easy to read and i don't do straight, first perspective 'i put my straight blonde hair up into a messy bun'. i hope you stick around. :D 
> 
> hmu on [twitter](https://twitter.com/DOYOUNGS_HONEY)


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A look into the origins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yup, this chapter is full of past events, starting from the first time they met! honestly, i only intended this to be 2 chapter long, but i really wanted to give more context/backround info on their story ... so here i am, with 4k words of just that.
> 
> thank you for sticking along and not leaving after the first chapter. enjoy!

  
“Are you going by the river again, darling?”, Seungkwan’s mom asked as he slips on his shoes after lunch. The boy blushes, caught red handed, even if he didn’t do anything wrong. He just couldn’t stop about that stupid 21 year-old-looking vampire who claims he’s much older than that ...

“Yeah.”, he responded, halfway out the door already. “I won’t stay out late!”

Eager to get to the river, Seungkwan flies there via dove form. That had always been an aspect he loved dearly about being a shapeshifter. The power to change into any animal, any human being, and use that to his advantage. He wouldn’t trade the feeling of swaying through the air, adrenaline pumping through his veins, for anything in the world.

Seungkwan briefly wondered if the vampire would be there ... did he want to meet him, too? He hadn’t even gotten a name last time.

Whatever. Whether he showed up or not was whatever. He had other fun things he could do by the river.

Low and behold, a tall figure, dressed in all black, was waiting for him under the shadow of a nearby tree. The vampire stood on their side of the land, and if neither of them passed the border, it could get hard to understand each other.

Seungkwan flies toward the tree, landing on one of the lower branches. Turning into his human form, he looks down to the latter.

“Hello there.”

He had hoped to get a reaction, but the man only looked up and smiled at him, like he knew Seungkwan would fly by. 

“Hello.”, he responds calmly. “Be careful up there.”

Seungkwan huffs. How nice of him.

“Don’t worry about me, mister.”, he says, leaning against the hard surface of the trunk. “I can handle myself.”

“I’ll take your word for it”, and from his spot above, the shapeshifter can see icy blue eyes seize down his figure. It takes everything in him not to shiver.

“I never got your name.”, he manages, hoping I’ll mask ... whatever he was feeling at that moment. 

‘Is that how low we are? One look and we’re gone?’ he asks himself as he meets said eyes. ‘Aaaaaaand we’re blushing. Wow. Way to make a fool of yourself.’

“I’ll give it to you if I get yours in exchange.”

Dear lord, Seungkwan just wants to get down there and wipe that smirk of his face.

“Fine.”

“Alright then. My name is Hansol.”

* * *

“His name is Hansol.”, Seungkwan mutters, face buried in his pillow. He regrets calling his friends now, because the five of them start whistling and laughing.

“Haven’t you gotten his last name, as well?” Yuchan asks, getting closer to his webcam, pushing Byeongkwan aside. The boy scoffs, pulling the popcorn bowl closer to himself. (Because yes, the two had the audacity to make Seungkwan wait to tell his story in order to get snacks.) “We need to know if it sounds good with your name, or you can start convincing him that he should be the one to change his when the two of you get married!”

Seungkwan shoots Chan a glare and Byeongkwan, bless his soul, sends a small ball of fairy dust towards his best friend, which effectively pushes him off the bed with a surprising force.

“I can’t believe you got a boy toy before me, Kwan!”, Donghyuck says, after a visible struggle to fit comfortably into a beanbag. “I thought you were my ride or die!”

“He’s not my boyfriend, dumbass!”, Seungkwan almost yells out, immediately piping down in order not to disturb his parents. “He’s not my boyfriend. And we all know you’d drop me for Jisung in a heartbeat.”

“Yeah, because he’s not a bitch.”, Donghyuck defends.

“He literally pushed you down the stairs two weeks ago.”, Ten reminds, shifting around in his bed, which is followed by a painted hiss. 

Silence overtakes them and a panicked expression makes it’s way onto Ten’s face, looking over at the screen.

“Well, this would be a good time to tell you guys that Ten got his back blown out for the first time recently.”

“Minhyuk!”

  
  


* * *

  
On his third consecutive day of going by the river, it’s way, way too hot, even for the middle of June, and Seungkwan chooses a pair of thin shorts and a translucent white button up. He chooses to rest by the river with the thought of playing in the water to cool himself down more than to meet a certain someone.

His mother wordlessly hands him a straw hat when he leaves and he walks, this time, and picks up a few tangerines from his father’s garden on his way. Once arrived, he sits down where he usually does, immediately kicking his slippers off to let his feet cool off in the water.

He’s so immersed in the feeling of icy water against his skin, hands busy to peel the fruit he took with him, he doesn’t even notice Hansol on the other shore. When he does happen to look up, he nearly screams, hitting his right foot on a particularly sharp rock.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”, Hansol says and Seungkwan watches his expression before checking his foot. Surely, a vampire would be able to smell blood, so the wound probably hadn’t drawn any.

“I just didn’t see you there”, he mutters, rubbing at the back of his ankle.

“Did you hurt yourself?”, the latter asks and it makes Seungkwan laugh a bit. Now looking at the vampire, he realises that he’s wearing his normal uniform (which already looks thick and stuffy) and he can’t help but frown and look down at what he’s wearing. 

“Are you not hot in all that clothing?”, he asks, genuinely perplexed, because it’s almost 40 degrees outside, for crying out loud.

Hansol notices the difference and smiles, shaking his head. “Oh, i don’t feel the heat. Or the cold, for that matter. I have no blood.”, he says, like it’s obvious, and excuse him, but Seungkwan did not study vampire anatomy.

“That doesn’t sound very fun.”, he concludes and the sentence barely comes out of his mouth before he’s splashed with cold water, lots of it, the entire front part of his shirt getting soaked. 

“Hey! Just because I feel the cold doesn’t mean you get to do that!”, he scolds and even though he doesn’t mind it all that much, the action was totally uncalled for.

He turns to Hansol and splashes him back before he has the time to see the panic on his face, or the fact that he was just about to say something. Seungkwan’s splash isn’t that strong, but it reaches the vampire, who just settles on laughing in disbelief.

“It was the fairy!”, he says in between breaths and Seungkwan notices the tiny, sparkly being just above the water, before it flies away and hides behind Hansol. Oh.  
  


* * *

  
Summer didn’t last forever, but Seungkwan desperately wishes it did, because imagining his days without his and Hansol’s meetings by the river makes him want to scream. So much for only wanting to know his name.

Of course, they hadn’t met every single day. After about a week of regular visits, Hansol had told him he had a job he actually needed to attend and that he had been on break up until then, but it was ending that weekend. They agreed on a time for their next meeting and settled on doing that every time they met, because the vampire refused to use technology of any form. 

“I don’t need it. And there’s magick. I don’t need some human invention.”

He never hears the end of Seungkwan calling him a grandpa, the shapeshifter even going as far as ignoring him while being on his phone once. 

At some point, they had started meeting later in the day, staying until nighttime. They would sit by the water, on the rocks, under the gentle glaze of the moon, discussing space theories and constellations. Other days, Hansol would just let Seungkwan talk about whatever he needed to get off his chest that day, listening to him no matter what. At times, it seemed like he was dozing off, but when Seungkwan turned, he met a pair of eyes that were already looking at him, and in moments like those he felt like they were the only people on Earth. Because Hansol looked at him like he was the center of his universe and just like the sun, Seungkwan shone and shone and he just watched. 

It made him ... think back to it, multiple times a day, to say the least. He had never deliberately had time to think about any of the vampire’s physical aspects but Hansol was really ... a sight to see. 

He lets himself fall backwards onto his bed, sighing loudly. No. Nope. Absolutely not. The latter was a friend, but it ended there. Point blank period. 

The next morning, Seungkwan was going to take the bus back into town, where he was going to live in a rented apartment, so he could be close by to the intern job he landed. They weren’t going to see each other for a while, at least not without technology, or Hansol coming to see him, which was less likely, because it took him a whole month to even come over to his side of the shore. The vampire had been reluctant to come near him, at first, and it had hurt Seungkwan a bit, but it was understandable. He shouldn’t have trusted Hansol so easily either, but he did anyway. Was he going to regret it? Maybe, maybe not. Only time could tell.

He was well aware that meeting up with a vampire secretly was not a good look for him, no matter how good the relationship between the two nations were. Which is exactly why he was sneaking out through the open window of his bedroom to meet said vampire. 

They had a last meeting planned before they would have to part ways and go back to their lives. It felt like a break-up and it was stupid, because really, they were barely friends. Did he keep that in mind while he put on makeup and dressed up a little bit nicer than usual? No. He tried convincing himself that he was dolling up to raise his self esteem, not to impress Hansol, but why would someone who usually had a god complex need that if it wasn’t for someone who made their heart skip a beat?

Ok, he would never admit it, but thinking about Hansol certainly did make him ... flustered. Catching feelings was weird because it made him overthink every single one of the latter’s actions, which would keep him up at night. Plus, the vampire probably didn’t return ... whatever it was that he was feeling. 

The latter was willing to share very little of his private life, like his job, or even his full name, but upon being pestered, he did reveal that he was a little over 300 years old. Quite a shocker, to say the least, especially only a week after they had met. He also revealed that he was born, not turned and had lived a couple of lifetimes among humans, before settling with his own kind. His time with mortals had taught him many things, from the way they think to how differently they react to danger compared to supernaturals, but he had grown tired of hiding and pretending, as well as having to move around often in order to not raise suspicions about the fact that he never aged. 

The point was, no matter how much of Hansol’s attention he was under, he didn’t think he was anything special, or at least anything the latter hadn’t seen in the past three centuries that he lived through.

  
  


* * *

  
When he gets by the river, the vampire is waiting for him by the shore, on ‘Seungkwan’s side’, looking up at the stars. He turns his way when the latter is only a few steps away, sitting up to greet him. 

“Hello there.”, Hansol greets, and while Seungkwan considers himself lucky every time he sees him smile, more so when he causes it, this time it’s a bit suspicious.

“You certainly seem ... happy.”, he resorts. “Happy to see me? Or happy to finally get rid of me?”

Hansol’s smile falls a little and he regrets saying that. Oh gods, what did he say-

“No, I’m quite saddened we’re not going to see each other that much.”, Hansol specifies. “But I have something for you. Come with me.”

Now, that catches him completely off guard. The vampire offers him his hand and Seungkwan realises it’s the first time they ever touched, because he almost flinches at how cold Hansol is. He is ... dead, after all. That never really struck with him, because it’s so weird to think about the fact that his heart isn’t beating when he’s right there ... alive. 

He’s taken to sit on the large stone that’s closest to the shore, stretching his legs like he always does. The latter sits down next to him, closer than he ever has before, hands still briefly touching until he reaches to take something out of his pocket. Seungkwan’s heart is threatening to beat out of his chest and the feeling amplifies when Hansol pulls out what seems to be a necklace.

When he holds it up, he realises that it is, indeed, a necklace, pearls and beads on a thin white thread. With a simple motion, he slips it over Seungkwan’s head, adjusting it so it lays neatly over his button up, but underneath his collar. 

“I’ve noticed you like pretty, shiny things.”, Hansol shares in a quiet voice. “Especially jewellery. I’m not particularly interested in them, but I asked a friend to help me pick out something. It’s my ‘see you later’ gift for you.”

And Seungkwan would love to respond, tell him that he absolutely adores it, apologise for not bringing something for him in return, but all words simply leave him as he looks down at pearls and peachy iridescent crystals adorning his neck. He thinks he might scream because it’s so beautiful and _oh gods he thinks he might have a crush on Hansol._

He desperately wishes they’re not real precious gems, because not only is he sure that they would have costed a fortune, but because he doesn’t feel worthy of them. 

“I don’t know what to say”, he manages after quite a while, and it’s true, because the gift left him absolutely breathless. Hansol often has that effect on him; leaves him breathless and brainless. “Hansol ... I love it.” 

The vampire’s entire face lights up, his hand taking Seungkwan’s. 

“Really? I was worried that you wouldn’t, my friend assured me you would ... I’ve seen you wear necklaces before but I didn’t know if you liked pearls.”, he explains hurriedly, and maybe in another lifetime, he would blush and Seungkwan would lean in and kiss him. 

Instead, after convincing Hansol that he loves the gift, they lean back to look at the stars. Maybe it’s better like this.

  
  


* * *

  
There is absolutely no way possible that the words he’s hearing right now are real. Because he knows damn well that he didn’t just get accepted to be _Mr. Byun_ ’s personal assistant. No. This is impossible. There’s actually no way he landed a job at the Institution. 

Seungkwan had worked at a firm for a good four months upon moving into the city, as an assistant. Getting coffee, bringing people papers, usual stuff. Sure, everyone there was an asshole, he hated every second of it and he was being paid minimum wage but it meant real-world-experience, something the academy hadn’t taught him. He got sick of it, at some point, and after he got comfortable enough around the city, he applied for a job at the Institution. It was thrilling, really, but he mainly did it because he was sure he wasn’t going to get it. He had nothing to lose, either way.

Now, he was sitting in a classy office room, with big windows and delicate minimal design, face to face with a rather scary individual, whose name he could not remember to save the life of him, and Ten, said individuals assistant. Being informed that he got the job as Mr. Byun’s staff and he would be starting tomorrow. 

He takes multiple looks at his friend to confirm that he heard that right and multiple pinches and counting of his fingers to determine he’s not dreaming. 

Seungkwan looks back at the white wooden desk and at the name platter, which, now he notices, reads ‘Youngho John Suh, minister of foreign affairs.’ _Minister!?_

“If you have any questions”, Mr. Suh, finishes, putting the folder that contains copies of his contract away, “Ten here will answer them for you. He’ll assist you this week and help you figure stuff out.”

“Thank you, sir.”, he manages after a hot minute and really, his voice sounds way too high pitched than it normally does.

Youngho smiles as Seungkwan stands up, followed to the exit by Ten. “No problem. Welcome to the team.”

  
  


* * *

  
Ten and him giggle and the exchange exited whispers as they tour the entire building, meeting different officials and staff, bowing and being introduced to everyone. 

Minhyuk stops by to talk to them briefly, pretending not to know them, but promises to treat them both to dinner under his breath. 

Seungkwan feels like he’s on cloud nine, because there’s no better job he could wish for, and although he’s an assistant now, he can climb up the rank through hard work - besides, he got Ten and Minhyuk now. It’s almost how he felt that night with Hansol.

Speaking of the vampire, much like he had expected, he had barely heard of him. His mother had brought him a letter that she claimed she found in his room when she had come to visit 2 months ago. To his delight, it was from Hansol - asking him how he was, how the city was treating him, if he was having fun. He had written a reply and gave it to his mother, asking her to leave it on his windowsill back at home. She had called to tell him that the letter had been taken that night, but no response. Seungkwan only hoped Hansol was going well.

  
  


* * *

  
The thought of meeting Mr. Byun, their heir and king, basically, terrified him. Walking into his office to Mr. Byun, Prime Minister Ho and her confidant had his knees buckle and his voice fail him. _Holy shit, he was not ready for this._

Upon his arrival, they all turn his way and he can see his boss smile a little. Ten bows slightly and pulls him to do the same. “He is your new assistant, sir.”

“Ah yes”, Baekhyun recalls and if he wouldn’t be absolutely terrified right now, he would probably register how stunning the man was in real life. “Boo Seungkwan, if I’m not mistaken. Have a seat, dear.”

Jessica Ho and the other woman, whom he vaguely recalls being mentioned as Mrs. Jeon, exchange amused glances and take their leave. “Don’t forget to sign those papers, Baek!”, the older says and they leave together with Ten, talking in hushed tones right after they close the door.

It’s just him and his employer in the room now, and now that he thinks about it, it’s weird to call him that. He was basically working at the royal house, since Byun Beakhyun was their rightful king, but he preferred not to be referred to as that. He also chose to lead their nation from the middle of their city, in a tall glass building which you could have easily mistaken as any other incorporation - when it was in fact, their ministry.

When he had come to rule 5 years ago, shortly before the passing of the late king, Baekhyun had changed all ministers from his father’s trusted men to young politicians with new views and will to modernise their country. Along with these changes, he wanted the ministry in the middle of the city, not on the outskirts, like it used to be, and chose to reuse an old building right in the center. Said building, now renovated and 8 storeys taller, served as the ministry headquarters.

“Please, sit down. It would be uncomfortable to keep standing.”, Beakhyun says, bringing Seungkwan back to reality. He steps forward and sits in one of the chairs before the latter’s desk, while the older settles behind it. 

“I can tell that you’re nervous.”, he starts and that doesn’t help his nerves at all. “You don’t have to worry. I’m not nearly as bad as the media paints me.” 

Seungkwan chuckles and fixes his hair out of his eyes. “It isn’t about you sir. This is my first big job so I’m kind of ... new to this. I hope I can make myself useful around here.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it.”, Beakhyun assures. “This place might seem upright and scary, but it’s really just a bunch of young adults trying to bring change to this country.”

  
  


* * *

  
“Food’s here!”, Seungkwan announces, looking at his phone’s screen. Within seconds, a bunch of hands are in his face, holding up either a rock, paper or scissors sign. He’s a second too late and everyone around him cheers as he gets up, silently obeying.

When Beakhyun said that they’re just a bunch of young adults pinching ideas in a building together, he didn’t expect to play rock-paper-scissors with the literal ministers and king of his nation to decide who has to go pick up their food delivery. So much had changed in the past 3 months that he was convinced much more time passed since he first entered the office.

It takes him two sets of octopus hands and Johnny coming from the fourth floor to get all the bags up to the office. Jiwoo, Ten and Minhyuk have taken their places on the floor in front of the coffee tables for easy access to all containers, while Baekhyun sits on the couch and Jessi chooses the latter’s desk. They unpack the food hastily and distribute it, the room filling with satisfied groans.

“I swear Kwan, you always know the best places to get food.”, Jiwoo compliments and in that moment of distraction, two pieces of chicken get stolen from her plate. 

“He’s just the best.”, Beakhyun adds. He had worked hard, even as an assistant and even after he learned how nice and understanding everyone around office was, because he truly loved it there. His life had taken a complete U turn, but he wasn’t complaining.

  
  


* * *

  
It takes him a year to see Hansol again. It starts with him not going back home for Christmas in order to celebrate it with his friends in the city, followed by the fact that his parents chose to visit him instead of it being the other way around. 

By the time he returns to his childhood home, with dark blue hair and under the title of king’s confidant, there's a bit more gravity to his actions.

He briefly wonders if Hansol would like his new hair. He had actually gone through the process of dying it instead of simply changing the color with his powers because of Jiwoo insisting he _shouldn’t skip this experience_. Truthfully, it had been a fun couple of hours with his friends, but he swears he can still smell that horrific bleach.

Seungkwan crashes right into bed the moment he arrives home in the afternoon and ends up sleeping until the next morning. His parents worriedly ask him if he’s being overworked and he doesn’t have the heart to tell them that his boss decided to be dramatic and throw a ‘See you soon, Kwan!’ dinner at which he had drank one too many glasses of wine. 

He spends his second day helping his parents if needed, cooking with his mom and playing board games with them after dinner. It’s only the day after that he excuses himself and goes down to the river. 

His time spent in the city almost made him forget how beautiful nature is. Sure, the view outside Beakhyun’s family manor is great, but it doesn’t compare to this. He had missed this but he had also moved on with his life, got the most amazing job and new friends - and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

The shapeshifter walks, taking the long way through the tangerine orchard. He hopes Hansol will be there. That’s quite selfish of him, considering he’s the one that hadn’t shown up in over a year, but the latter had never responded to his letter either. They were equal, in a way.

He had never stopped wearing the necklace, growing attached to it - learning to match it with every outfit, no matter the occasion, the piece of jewellery stayed on, safely underneath his shirt. Keeping it to himself, like a secret tucked next to his heart, yet out in the open, showcased proudly. 

“Hello, Seungkwan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wooooo we're in for a wild rideeeee. what's gonna happen next? find out in the next chapter *wink wonk* ;D
> 
> I can’t write orange/tangerine metaphors, especially not like April does, but it felt like my moral obligation to at least include them. 
> 
> come find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/DOYOUNGS_HONEY)


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